It's not "normal" per se, but it does happen.  

Would you rather be in the midwest or SE?  

It is a red flag per se, but not a deal breaker on its own.how a landlord manages their property plays a big role in the regularity of tenant payments.

This family member is fully trustworthy and doesn't need the income per se, but structuring it this way could benefit both of us.

Pick better neighborhoods and put a little more down to get to break even you will come out far ahead in the long run dont get so focused on cash flow per se.

The original cost is erased per se.

Might be worth reviewing to hopefully learn from my errors https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/2015-02-04-confessions-se...

I'm interested in getting into the SE Minnesota market. have family there and would like to move back to the area. i know an in person meet up may not be possible, but i would like to talk deals. 

Try to figure out what will work best LONG term for you...and do a bunch of that, so it's scalable.I've continually created more headaches here in Chicago by doing STR, MTR, LTR, wholesaling flipping, etc....not I'm laser-focused on our renovation business but have enough expertise across the board to share what didn't work for me lolI am no longer investing, but I love Garfield Park and anything SE towards the lake. 

thanks,Pat I'm a bit late to the party here so my apologies.Had a great call with @Drew Sygit about a similar topic.Wealth of knowledge from Drew and if you are still looking at starting a PM business, highly recommend you connect with him if he is available 😁100% agreed with @Nathan GesnerWe started PM in Toledo as a subsidiary to our turnkey outfit.Took us 5+ years to figure S#@% out lolSo definitely start "1 by 1" unit per se and grow organically.We are at a point just now where we are looking to scale via M&A.And that is only because I feel that we have reached our peak when it comes to generating organic leads.We get regular lead form opt ins and calls to our office.Literarily "monopolized" Google with SEO and our good reviews so there isn't much else to do IMO.Only issue I see is we aren't looking at expanding out of city and will stick with Toledo for now.Which will limit us in terms of expansion.Much success and all the bet with your business